


Din's Blessing

by helianthe



Category: Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, The Legend of Zelda
Genre: Coming of Age, Gen, Gerudo Fortress Culture Development, gerudo, how the Gerudo procreate, original character art
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-08
Updated: 2014-01-08
Packaged: 2018-01-08 00:01:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1125936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helianthe/pseuds/helianthe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Gerudo have a terrible secret.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Din's Blessing

_It was said that out of the desert, Din created the Gerudo._

_“I shall grant them my power,” said she, “I shall form them in my image, fashioning them with a warrior’s spirit. They shall be the fiercest people of all of Hyrule, and they will be strong. I give them skill with the bow and sword, I give them cunning and craftiness, I give them pride and freedom.”_

_So it was to be. But fair Nayru, in all her gentleness and wisdom, placed a hand upon her sister’s arm and said unto her:_

_“I too, shall grant them a gift. For if they were to have all that you would give them, they would embark upon conquests and spill the blood of all who dwell Hyrule,” Nayru whispered softly, for she loved her children and her creation. Stretching her hand to the desert, she made her proclamation._

_“I declare this: only once in a century, shall a man be born into this people.” As it was done, Din’s anger flared against her sister._

_“Would you destroy this people?”_

_“No, they will never die,” the wise one replied, and made one final promise. “For this man shall live longer than any man of any race; he will always live to sire a son. He will possess the power of his people, he will be the King of his kind, and he will father his nation.”_

_And so, Din agreed._

 

**Din’s Blessing**

by r.lee 

Before the green-clad hero delivered the kingdom of Hyrule, dark clouds covered the land for seven years. All books and minstrels speak of the unthinkable evil of these times, how the darkness had been the work of an ugly and twisted man that history would forever remember as Ganondorf, King of the Gerudo.

But few records will remember that in his youth, before the black arts deformed him, he was ruddy and handsome, one befitting the image of a King. He was courageous and strong, and his people loved and revered him as they would a god.

He was the sole male child in a race of women, and so, he was their savior. If the Gerudo were to live, they were to cherish him and give themselves over to him utterly. It was not only his right as King, but his most sacred duty to his people.

Thus, the race of warriors, all half-sisters and daughters, became a harem. Desert lionesses to a single sovereign. This was the secret of the Gerudo. This was their pride.

In those old days, a girl waited upon the fortress walls, her face unveiled and long hair loosened in defiance. She watched as the fat golden disk slide across an oily crimson sky, waiting to see the long shadows of horses and warriors fill the valley before they galloped into view.

Every sunset, she watched as they brought loads of stolen goods from the raids, shouting and laughing and wiping their sullied swords. Every evening she spied the young King below, dismounting as the desert wind unfurled his painted burlap cloak. She saw every detail, his elegant fingers curled around an ornamented bridle, how the muscles rippled in his neck.

And she despised him in her heart.

 

 

Her glaive almost fell out of the crook of her elbow as Aru used both hands to frantically re-tie her hair. Catching it before it swayed out of her reach, she gave a single sweep of her hand through her secured ponytail and stepped inside.

She slipped silently into the common room where the Guard was finishing dinner. She heard Meela and Kisha’s laughter first, and glanced to see Loa and Tamar sitting on cushions nearby, eating as they listened. The other sisters were similarly positioned in the lounge, reclining and socializing, plumed in the purple silks of the Guard uniform. The light from the fire glowed against the series of bronze skin and scarlet hair.

“He’s seeing Yori tonight,” Meela said imperiously, the bowl in her lap revealing her untouched dinner. With just these words, Aru had no doubt as of what they were speaking, and she scowled. “Poor, stupid girl. I caught her eating a raw cucco liver this morning. Gods know what other shameful superstitions she’s been following in attempts to conceive a boy.”

She and Kisha suddenly looked around, and everybody in their circle noticed pointedly that Yori was absent from the room. Aru leaned the glaive on the rack with the others. She bristled, but nobody seemed to notice.

“Bah. Surely all of us will be dead by the time our next King is born,” Kisha remarked, and Meela had reached into her bowl, only to abandon it again.

“Of course! Not even a quarter of a century has passed since his birth. But she’s so hopelessly obsessed with him. She would do anything to bear him a son and become his favorite, his queen.”

“How pitiful… he hardly even looks at her.”

Aru noticed how large Tamar’s belly had grown, and how much cheerier and condescending Meela had become since her own night. Kisha was the oldest, and had already seen him two times, but Loa… Loa sat quietly with a hand resting on her knee, her short hair lining the edge of her jaw. As a lesser Gerudo, she would never be invited into the royal chambers.

As if she too, were disinterested in the talk, Loa passed Aru a bowl of food, acknowledging her entrance. Aru had been famished upon entering the room, but the subject now made her feel sick… a strange discomfort seized her. Her own coming-of-age was approaching.

“She’ll probably throw herself at him, and--”

“Can we not,” Aru interrupted, the anger sharpening her voice, “talk about something else?”

All four heads swiveled towards her, those painted eyes settling upon their youngest sister. She was the plainest, the least beautiful of the five friends. Even Loa had a comeliness that Aru did not.

But Aru was strong. Tamar could shoot the straightest arrow, but Aru was the deadliest in combat and trained the most earnestly. For this reason, perhaps she was the one who remembered the true heart of the Gerudo.

“What’s wrong, Aru?” Tamar asked gently, her hand upon the ridge of her belly.

“We swore to be the best of the Thieves, don’t any of you remember? The best of the King’s warriors, the fastest riders of Hyrule! And now, all you do is laze about and daydream, gossiping about such a worthless thing!”

“Oh, dear Aru,” Kisha replied, hardly batting an eyebrow at the sharp rebuke. “You’re just young. Don’t try to trick us into believing your indifference. I see you every night, waiting on the hill to catch a glimpse of him riding into the fortress.”

Aru was taken aback at this. “What?”

“Just admit that you’re just as attracted to him as we are,” was the haughty reply. Aru felt that strange sensation, a feeling of discomfort that she could not quite name.

“Maybe all this training is just a cover-up,” Meela added, her mean spirit showing plainly. “Since you can’t catch his eye with your looks, you want to get his attention with your strength. Am I right?”

The notion was appalling, but Aru still felt as if Meela had pulled a blanket off of her while she was sleeping, exposing her when she was most vulnerable.

“Don’t be cruel, Meela,” Tamar chastised with a frown, and said to Aru more kindly. “Your time will come too, Aru. Then you’ll see how exciting it all is.”

“No.” Aru shook her head, struggling to maintain her hand in the conversation. “Does it not seem wrong to any of you? That all of you are seeing the same man? Our half-brother?”

The flickering firelight blinked as shadows slithered across the walls. The Thieves had arrived. They passed across the hall, making their way deeper into their fortress, towards those restricted areas wbere only warriors of their rank were permitted. Immediately, the Guard rose to their feet and covered their faces with their purple veils, casting their faces down in unison. Aru swayed to her feet, still hot with an anger that incited a sudden inclination towards rebellion. For it was the King who brought up the end of the procession, striding with his highest officers beside him.

The light captured in his amber frontlet flared up like an ephemeral flame, catching Aru’s eye, drawing it. She left her face uncovered as she deliberately looked up, leaving the veil limp in her hand. Aside from his astounding beauty, there was a masculine detachment to him that both repelled her and attracted her all at once. She experienced the full force of this power as his gaze swept across the ranks of the Guard. It fell upon the only naked face in the room, and for a single, infinitesimal moment, their eyes met.

She stood her ground, and even lifted her chin just slightly, amazed at her own audacity.

Like the flame on his forehead, the flicker in those eyes came and went in an instant. She was already looking at his back as the entourage exited the room, leaving behind the chatter and whispers of the Guard.

Aru looked back to her friends who had also entered into this corporate discussion. Loa was no where to be seen. Aru suspected she had slipped out when the Thieves began their passage.

She too, had had enough. Snatching up her bowl, she retreated from the room, looking forward to eating alone in the watchtower.

Nobody had noticed.

 

**Author's Note:**

> This story was actually completed a couple of years ago, but because I took long hiatuses between chapters, the pacing was off and some parts were very hastily put together, resulting in some large holes.. I always entertained the idea of going back to rewrite it...
> 
> so here we are! This story is one of my personal favorites. The previous version is available on FFN, but if you want to remain unspoiled for this revised version, I'll be seeing you again soon. Thank you for reading, truly!


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